This invention is directed to an amusement toy capable of producing an output wherein the output is of an entertaining nature for a small child. Most specifically, the invention is directed to a toy which includes a first member capable of producing a rotational output and a second member associated with the first member wherein in response to linear movement of the second member, the first member is rotated.
A variety of amusement toys are known. Included are tops and other spinning type devices. These date back to antiquity. The simplest of these are nothing more than a carved wooded device which can be rapidly spun by winding a string around the device and pulling the string from the device.
The toy tops described in the preceeding paragraph, of course, require certain manual dexterity to operate. This precludes the use of these type of devices by small children. A device more suitable for use by a small child includes the common pump type rotating top toy. This toy utilizes a central shaft which the child pumps up and down in order to impart a rotational momentum to a flywheel portion of the toy. These types of toys have been equipped with music boxes and the like, so as to emit a noise in response to spinning of the rotational member of the toy.
The toys described in the preceeding paragraph have been quite popular for several decades because of the play value inherent therein. They, however, require use upon a hard surface because the housing of the toy itself spins. If these types of toys were utilized on a soft surface, such as a rug or the like, the momentum of the toy is easily dissapated because of friction between the housing and the softer surface.